Gem - Port Canaveral - Disney

Hi,

I have found older threads on a related topic but they seem locked or very dated so forgive me for starting a new one.

We are sailing on the Gem in early March. Of course, stopping in Port Canaveral. I have been to the Orlando area many times. I have been to Port Canaveral and IMHO... there is nothing there to keep one entertained for a day.

I happen to be traveling with someone who has never set foot in Disney World. While this is my third cruise, it is my first on NCL and I have been told to cut using cruise line marked up excursions and make my own.

SO, that said.... I am looking for opinions for my plan. I have looked and rental cars for a day seem to be under $40. My goal would be to get off ship by 12:30pm or so after it docks, get the car... drive to Magic Kingdom (I know the lay of the land well) and then return to the ship well before time to set sail.

It's March, Disney should not be packed and Magic Kingdom is a park you can do in a day. I am not seeing NCL offering Disney as a trip during our voyage, just Universal.

Should I be able to pull this off? Sounds faster and cheaper then even using NCL if they offered Disney as an excursion.

We are also on the GEM in March & Disney is one of the excursions offered. Maybe double check your excursions again. Enjoy your cruise!

Thanks, I will.

That said, I still am thinking a $40 rental car for 2 and paying directly for Disney passes is going to be cheaper then using a NCL bus excursion. Certainly they don't do it at cost.

We've never rented a car to go to the Orlando area, but I have read about people doing this with great success. Of course I can't find those posts now! However, if you need advice about rental companies, etc, you could post on the Florida departures forum:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=495

(There's even a thread on there from someone who works in Port Canaveral.)

As for going to the MK, that would indeed be the best park for you assuming that your day won't also be one of WDW"s "extra magic hours" days at MK (or whatever they're calling it now- resort guests can enter the park early- or stay late, so the park would be a lot more crowded). Also, early March is just the beginning of Spring Break, mid-March can start to get busy. The schedule for "extra magic hours" will be posted on Disney's site a month or so in advance.

On our cruise last Jan. we flew into Orlando and rented a car to drive to Port Canaveral. It is a fairly short drive (about 45 minutes) if done during non-rush hour. You should have no problem renting a car and doing Magic Kingdom. I'll be there on the 28th, can't wait!

I was on the Gem in November and went to Cocoa Beach for the day~~you are so right there is not much to do for the day~~rather boring. I think that would be nice~what you are planning. The beach was not that great! I am going for a week to Disney on March 31st~flying, my graddaughter's first trip to Disney~she is seven~perfect age! Good luck with your plans and happy sailing! Looking for a cruise this year myself!:)

We are also on the GEM in March & Disney is one of the excursions offered. Maybe double check your excursions again. Enjoy your cruise!

Why don't you come over and join our roll call? It's been very quiet. We thought we were the only ones on the cruise.

May I also suggest that you review and utilize the Disney "Fast Pass" option at any of the parks, this will allow you to quickly access some of the rides or attractions and not waste time in line.

Hi Sailingnut - would you mind filling me in on your Cocoa Beach day? We'll be down in April and I'm trying to figure out what to do for the day. We arrive late (noon) and leave at 10pm and I don't want to do Disney or any of the parks. I'm looking into car rentals, but I think the companies located near the port close early - 4 or 5 - which wouldn't really make much sense to rent. How did you get to the beach? Were taxi's easy to find both ways? What did you do?

Thanks!!

Lisa.

I was on the Gem in November and went to Cocoa Beach for the day~~you are so right there is not much to do for the day~~rather boring. I think that would be nice~what you are planning. The beach was not that great! I am going for a week to Disney on March 31st~flying, my graddaughter's first trip to Disney~she is seven~perfect age! Good luck with your plans and happy sailing! Looking for a cruise this year myself!:)

Cocoa doesn't have a lot to do if you aren't interested in laying on the beach. There is a large Ron Jon's store which is fun to go to and a few smaller stores and lots of restaurants but not much else there.

Hi,

 

I have found older threads on a related topic but they seem locked or very dated so forgive me for starting a new one.

 

We are sailing on the Gem in early March. Of course, stopping in Port Canaveral. I have been to the Orlando area many times. I have been to Port Canaveral and IMHO... there is nothing there to keep one entertained for a day.

 

I happen to be traveling with someone who has never set foot in Disney World. While this is my third cruise, it is my first on NCL and I have been told to cut using cruise line marked up excursions and make my own.

 

SO, that said.... I am looking for opinions for my plan. I have looked and rental cars for a day seem to be under $40. My goal would be to get off ship by 12:30pm or so after it docks, get the car... drive to Magic Kingdom (I know the lay of the land well) and then return to the ship well before time to set sail.

 

It's March, Disney should not be packed and Magic Kingdom is a park you can do in a day. I am not seeing NCL offering Disney as a trip during our voyage, just Universal.

 

Should I be able to pull this off? Sounds faster and cheaper then even using NCL if they offered Disney as an excursion.

It is really not that much more to purchase the cruise excursion. A one day ticket to the park is $90.00 and I think the bus is around $60.

I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong.

It is really not that much more to purchase the cruise excursion. A one day ticket to the park is $90.00 and I think the bus is around $60.

 

I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong.

Not sure about the bus but the one day pass I just bought was around $85.

Why don't you come over and join our roll call? It's been very quiet. We thought we were the only ones on the cruise.

LOL - I will take a look. Last I checked, yes, it was extremely quiet. I was afraid this would be a bad time to cruise so near spring break but obviously not! Looks like we timed it just right! :D

We were on the GEM 12/25, went to Universal, time-wise would be the same. Booked via NCL

Arrived in-Port @12, got to park @2. need to leave park between 7&8.

So you have time for a fast visit, nothing fancy since missing the ship depart is not good.

We were on the GEM 12/25, went to Universal, time-wise would be the same. Booked via NCL

 

Arrived in-Port @12, got to park @2. need to leave park between 7&8.

 

So you have time for a fast visit, nothing fancy since missing the ship depart is not good.

Are the buses on a loop or do you have to meet the bus at a certain time?

Are the buses on a loop or do you have to meet the bus at a certain time?

When we went to Universal on the same itinerary (Jewel), there were three buses - enough for all the passengers who booked the excursion - if there are more people booking, then I am sure they would offer more buses. They offered pickup at the park at 7pm, 7:30p, and 8pm (first come first served). Since the parks closed at 6pm when we were there, the first two buses filled at 7pm and left immediately, not sure if the third bus stuck around until 8pm, but I assume they had to wait until 8pm exactly in case of stragglers.

Check again to see if a WDW tour is offered for your cruise - whether it's ticket included or just the bus transportation (they use the same buses). You might try to call the Shore Excursion Department to see if they are sold out or perhaps just not showing on the website. Either way (with or without ticket) it is definitely the way to go (if ticket is included there is no upcharge from what WDW charges, just the cost of the transportation.) I recommend this because for just two people the price difference isn't huge and because it will save you time. If you rent a car, you will have to pick up the car (many meet you right at port, but you might have to drop off the driver back at the rental location), then drive to Disney (paying tolls), park at the TTC parking lot ($), take a tram to the TTC (and then maybe stand in line to buy tickets or cah in your voucher from purchasing online?), get to MK and enjoy your day, then take the monorail to the TTC, tram back to the parking lot, get out of WDW, drive back to the rental location to drop off car, get a taxi to port, etc... If you take the bus, it takes you directly from the ship to the TTC and picks you up at the same place and drops you right at the ship.. When you add it all up, you won't save any time driving (it may take more time), and you can nap (like we did) the entire way back :D.

For cost sake, if we had three, four or five people, it might be worth it to rent the car, but for just two, we found it MUCH simpler to just take the bus (we had our own tickets). The hassles of renting for two were just not worth it to us.

Robin

Great info. Thanks so much!

You may want to check this page, which will tell you what crowd trends are like for your date. http://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/crowd-calendar . This site also has good information, like pre-tested touring plans, etc--might help you make the most of your short time at the Magic Kingdom. For example, you may like the "Late Arrival One-Day Plan for Adults".

(Even if it is a "10", it sounds like you've still made up your mind to be there--but you can see that the historical trends for early March are moderate to light until Spring Breaks get hopping.)

You better check the closing times of Disney parks before you go - it may close at 5pm if it's in early March and during the week.

Well,

While I appreciate all the input, it appears my master plan may not work.

I did the math. To rent a car and pay tolls, Disney parking, for two single day tickets (adult) and even threw in some money for gas and even a taxi to and from the car rental place.... I found we'd spend around $240 if we did this on our own.

NCL IS offering this excursion. I must have been blind when I didn't see it. However, they are charging (all inclusive) $159 per person or $318 for the two of us. That means the upcharge by using NCL even for two people is at least $50+

Disney Tickets are $85 so even if we used NCL just for the bus ride ($68 each round trip) using NCL only saves a few dollars per person.

The kicker is all the car rental companies at the Port seems to close at 6, the latest. The parks are closing 7-8pm. So we'd have to cut short our already short day.... to return the car in time just to go sit on the ship.

Looks like paying NCL $50 more for both of us not only gives us more park time... you can't return a rental car as late as those buses are returning.

Oh well. Unless people know of a car rental place that is open later, NCL looks like the only option that really lets you use as much of the day as possible at WDW.

Don't any of the car rentals have drop off arrangements for late night?

Are the buses on a loop or do you have to meet the bus at a certain time?

They're not on a loop, first back to ship @7, last @ 8; after that you'd need a cab (about $150)

whatever the cost, disney is always gonna be expensive, id still go :)

what about doing kenedy space centre? I also love the waterparks, not sure if its worth renting a car to go to one for a few hrs? not sure what else to sudgest

Do the buses have restrooms?